How Don Jazzy Can Upend Africa`s Digital Revolution

? D Banj, tell them de koko, I say make you yarn them the koko, D Banj, tell them de koko,Make you yarn them the koko now. When you see woman you like, you go just use the magic word][You go say] ?

This was the first time in my life getting to hear don jazzy’s voice, his voice stood in the intersection of Bass and pop and to be sincere it was distinct, coarse and ugly you really could not compare it to what barry white’s voice sounded like back then. But something stood appealing about his voice, it resonates deep within your nerves the first time you get to hear it, it truly sounds enchanting. This was 2005 and I was in my 2nd year in the University. Everybody wanted this song on their blackberry and Nokia Phones, it was played and downloaded across multiple platforms.

Michael Collins Ajereh aka Don Jazzy returned to Nigeria with his friend D’banj in 2004 with one vision, to make Dbanj the biggest pop artist in Africa and tap into the emerging music cultural revolution. They both jointly created their record label, Mo’Hits, which went on to churn out 3 chart topping albums for Dbanj before the end of 2008.

In March 2012, After several months of speculation and wild rumors, ace producer, Don Jazzy confirmed via his Twitter account the break-up of Mo’Hits. Their separation, as widely viewed by music analysts, is as a result of the different vision both artist wanted for themselves which came at crossroads at that particular time. D’banj wanted to pursue the the global market and receive world wide recognition as an artist while Don-Jazzy wanted to be known in Africa as the producer of great music . To stay within the limit, an artist would always remain an artist, fame drives them while a producer would always pursue hit song that would last eternity in his portfolio, both went on to become very successful in their pursuit.

Mavin boss with his signature staff.

What is striking about Don Jazzy is his addiction to social media and the cult followers he commands globally. With close to 5.5M followers on all his social media accounts, it is safe to assume that Don jazzy can spur a digital revolution in Africa. When we talk about entrepreneurship and innovation he has shown exemplary skills that every African entrepreneurs should learn from. No wonder Mavins records has been breaking milestones in the digital space. And to say a lot must have been invested by this maverick to achieve this feat will be right.With the like of Wande Coal, Dr Sid and D`prince who have produced hits songs continuously, which would have been impossible to achieved without out the vision, skills and managerial ability of Don Jazzy. Who have ever imagined that Reekado Banks, Dija and Korede bello would become instant hits within a few months of releasing their first tracks?Their songs made waves with various endorsement and awards even the great Quincy Jones could not maintain the momentum as don jazzy has persistently delivered on the songs he produced.

What is more marveling is the way the music business is now being handled professionally within the Mavins empire . I strongly believe that if Don Jazzy invest in the Nigeria’s emerging tech ecosystem things would change in a bigger way, he has the finance, the followers and the gut to make big bets. Silicon Valley would not save Africa with the level of growth the current players expect, our growth does not need to come from investors outside our continent. When Mike Markkula invested US$250,000 in Apple ($80,000 as an equity investment in the company and $170,000 as a loan) and became a one-third owner of Apple there was no critical calculation in the transaction it was just his mere gut, he bought into Steve’s vision and believed in him. Many companies that have raised huge funding in America happens in forums, bar, hangout or from friends and they always know it would be for the long term.

Any Silicon Valley investment in Africa is business wise, too many details into the investment , term sheet, financial projections, track record, complete details of founders, background check and their identification and a lot of questions. It is neither driven by instinct nor gut. The rich moguls in African including the Nigeria entertainment big boys need to take risk with their money and invest in Africa startups. Facebook did not pass through accelerator to scale, today Peter tiel is strong on Facebook board because he took a bet by becoming the first third-party investor acquiring 10.2% for $500,000 in August 2004. He sold the majority of his shares in Facebook for over $1 billion in 2012 after the later IPO.

I strongly believe in an intersection between music and technology. Music can make people experience technology in a totally different way. Let us assume that Don Jazzy invests in www.mymusic.com.ng a music platform that aims to prevent free downloads in Nigeria and Africa beyond. This will help the music industry grow exponentially beyond its current state. Take for example, artist under Mavin record can exclusively release their albums on this platform, people visit this platform to have access to catalog of songs. If 5 million people visit and 1 million pay N1000 per annum to have access to mavins catalog of songs that would be 1billion revenue in a year.

To say Music is part of our life is not exaggerating, the upcoming generation are crazy , lazy and they need everything easy.

The Next wave of African silicon would be born from fashion, music, betting & social leveraging on technology. If Africa is to compete with other technology developed countries it has to begin its revolution from within and invest in technology. A grossing sector like entertainment can help spark such revolution and Africa entertainment mogul like like don jazzy can take the lead and see others like him follow suit. The time is now for our artist to deep their feet in new waters.